1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to dental syringes for injecting air and water into a patient's mouth. More particularly, the invention concerns a dental syringe having a disposable dispensing head, the control valving for which is remotely located.
2. Discussion of the Invention
In order to prevent spread of contamination, it is necessary to either sterilize or dispose of tools and equipment that are used in or about a patient's mouth during the performance of dental procedures. By way of example, dental drills, picks mirrors, clamps and the like are normally sterilized after each use. On the other hand, swabs, packings and the like are, of course, disposed of in a sterile container after use.
Certain instruments such as dental syringes of the character which eject air and water in the patient's mouth present a more difficult problem. While it is possible to provide a hand-held dental syringe with a disposable, fluid-dispensing tip, the dispensing head itself is typically too expensive to discard and, because it houses the somewhat complex air and water-dispensing control valves, is virtually impossible to effectively sterilize.
As a general rule, the prior art dental syringe comprises a stainless steel head portion which includes an elongated, curved fluid dispensing tip that is threadably connected to the head. Integral with the head portion of the syringe is a handle portion which houses the fluid conduits that controllably supply air and water to the dispensing tip. The control valves which control the flow of air and water toward the dispensing tip are typically housed within the head portion of the syringe and comprise outwardly extending finger engaging valve operating elements which can be depressed by the dentist to regulate the flow of air and water out of the dispensing tip and into the patient's mouth. While in many such prior art devices the dispensing tip is formed of plastic and can be removed from the head and discarded, the head and handle portion, which also become contaminated, are much to expensive to discard after each use. Accordingly, the head and handle portion must be sterilized, to the extent possible, before treating the next patient. As previously mentioned, the somewhat complex and delicate control valves that are housed within the head portion or the instrument preclude high temperature sterilization and do not lend themselves to meaningful sterilization by chemical means.